How to Skip the Lines at the Eiffel Tower

Not everyone who visits Paris wants to go to the Eiffel Tower (yours truly included). But those who do usually want to figure out how to avoid the notoriously long lines. And, as usual, there seems to be a lot of confusion around the available options, some of it intentional by those hoping to profit from time-pressed tourists. 

I don’t take people to the Eiffel Tower, but this is the advice I give to my own clients for avoiding the worst of the lines without being completely ripped off by the Tourism Industrial Complex:

1. Buy Your Tickets Directly from the Official Eiffel Tower Website

Always check here first for the best price and no waiting in line. Up until a few years ago there was no way for individuals to purchase tickets in advance. Only tour groups could do this. Now anyone can buy tickets on their official website up to two months in advance for a specific timeslot to access the summit (as well as the 1st and 2nd levels) via elevator or stairs. The stairs option is always cheaper if you’re feeling sporty; they have a low rise, so are relatively easy, and are enclosed in a metal cage for safety, so you can see through them (although people afraid of heights may not appreciate that).

Tickets do sell out quickly (tour operators buy them in bulk in advance, unfortunately), but if you methodically check each date sometimes there are a few open slots at the last minute. Bizarrely, sometimes even if the tickets are sold out, you can still buy a combined entry ticket with a glass of Champagne, so be sure to scroll down to see all of the available options for each date.

Summit Tickets with Elevator or Stairs

This is the very top, and actually consists of two levels: one indoors and a smaller “open air” level just above it. You also get to look through the windows into Gustave Eiffel’s tiny office, with waxworks statues of Gustave, his daughter Claire, and Thomas Edison. One of the most important things to know about the summit is that even with a lift (elevator) ticket, you’ll have to switch elevators on the second level, both on the way up and down, and there are always lines for this because it also includes the people who came up the stairs to the 2nd level (and there’s no possibility of skipping ahead for anyone). This can considerably add to your wait time, because the summit almost always sells out. Also, for those who are a bit claustrophobic, the summit is the smallest level of the Eiffel Tower, so it can feel pretty tightly packed. So if you want to get up and down with the least hassle or have more space to walk around, I recommend just going to the second level — which is still higher than all of the surrounding buildings!

Summit by Elevator
– €36.10 for adults
– €18.10 for 12-24 years old
– €9.10 for 4-11 years old

Summit by Stairs to the 2nd Level, then Elevator
– €27.50 for adults
– €13.80 for 12-24 years old
– €6.90 for 4-11 years old
If these tickets are sold out online, you can also try to get them directly on-site (some spaces are always held for each time slot). This is usually easier the later in the evening you go (see below).

Other Options Available
– Access with a 12cl Glass of Champagne: €60.10 (note that the “Champagne Bar” isn’t actually a bar, it’s just a window where drinks are sold and a few outdoor standing stables (no seating).
– Access with a Tour in English: €71.10 with a guide all the way to the summit (€53.10/€34.10 for under 25/under 12); €66.10 with guide just to 2nd level then on your own to summit (€48.10/€29.10 for under 25/under 12). Group size is 12 people max. I don’t think anyone needs a guide for the Eiffel Tower, but if these are the only tickets available, these are decent prices.
– Access with Sunday Brunch at Madame Brasserie on the 1st Level: €116.10 for adults (€98.10/€59.10 for under 25/under 12). Only on Sundays at 12:30pm (elevator from 10:30am).

Second Level Tickets with Elevator or Stairs

When the summit tickets are all sold out, there are often still spaces on the second level. I actually prefer going here because: the second level is still higher than everything else around it — 377ft/149m — so the views are still amazing; there are multiple snack and drink options and shops; and there’s a lot more space to move around. There are two options: stairs and elevator.

2nd Level by Elevator
– €23.10 for adults
– €11.60 for 12-24 years old
– €5.90 for 4-11 years old

2nd Level by Stairs
– €14.50 for adults
– €7.30 for 12-24 years old
– €3.70 for 4-11 years old
Note that you CANNOT purchase an extra ticket to the summit via the elevator once you’re at the Eiffel Tower with this ticket; you’d have to purchase the full “Summit by Stairs to the 2nd Level, then Elevator” ticket option, if available.

Other Options Available
– Access with a 10cl Glass of Champagne: €44.10 with elevator, €35.50 with stairs (note that you pick up your tiny glass of Champagne at the 2nd floor kiosk, there’s no “Champagne Bar”).
– Access with a Tour in English: €53.10 (€41.60/€25.90 for under 25/under 12). Starts on 2nd level then finishes on 1st level. Group of 12 max. I don’t think a tour is necessary unless this is the only ticket available to get into the Eiffel Tower on the dates you want.

Restaurant Booking on the Eiffel Tower

Aside from the joint ticket to the summit with Sunday Brunch at Madame Brasserie, there are no options on the official website to dine at the Eiffel Tower with access to the summit. If you book independent at Madame Brasserie, which is on the 1st level, you won’t have access to any other level without a separate ticket from the Eiffel Tower website. If you book at the more formal Jules Verne Restaurant on the 2nd level, you will have the same restriction of not being able to visit the summit without a separate ticket (which must be purchased before you access the restaurant).

2. Buy Eiffel Tower Tickets through the Paris Tourist Office

The Paris Tourism Office sells a few “Paris Passlib” packages that include Eiffel Tower access, up to two months in advance, which are sent via email. First is the Best-of Paris Passlib’ Seine: Eiffel Tower + Cruise for €46.82, which includes the Eiffel Tower 2nd level ticket via elevator and a Seine River Cruise (they can be booked different days). Second is the Paris PassLib’ City: €109 for access to 5 activities from a list, including access the 2nd level of the Eiffel Tower at a designated time slot. These are fair prices if you were going to book the other options anyway.

Tour Operator Rip-Off Warning!

After much research over the years, I’ve found this to be the worst option, unless you don’t mind being ripped off. The Tourism Industrial Complex wants to squeeze as much money out of you as possible, and they are working together to make sure they all get a cut. The ugly truth us that they buy up thousands of tickets in advance at a huge discount and then sell them for 100-300% MORE than the official price. And since there are no tickets left for individuals to purchase on the official website, you’re forced to buy these overpriced tickets for whatever price they’re selling them for. Unfortunately, small independent tour companies and guides would love to get tickets in advance for their clients, but they don’t have the thousands of clients each month needed to buy in bulk, only a very few companies can do that. And the even uglier truth is that two of the biggest companies work together to make sure you’re getting ripped off. Almost every big tour operator sells its tours through the massive tour reseller Viator, which was “acquired” in late 2014 by the supposedly unbiased review site TripAdvisor. TripAdvisor blatantly promotes ONLY the tour companies that sell Eiffel Tower tours (I’m assuming because if they “just” sold the tickets we’d all see how much they jack up the prices). This screen shot below is TripAdvisor page for the Eiffel Tower (taken May 2, 2025):

As you can see, TripAdvisor makes it look as if the ONLY way to get tickets is to click on that green button for the Viator options, the cheapest being €39. That’s already more expensive than the official price, and if you click through to find it, the cheapest summit ticket with elevator access is €119 (that €39 was for taking the stairs to the 2nd level). Only if you ignore the bright green button and scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page will you see a tiny “Visit Website” link will you actually link to the REAL Eiffel Tower website where the same tickets are just €36.10.

If they were offering something significantly better than what you could get through the official website, I could understand a price increase, but they are not. Do people really think it’s okay for TripAdvisor to mislead readers (and making a profit from that) if it’s still trying to pass itself off as a website where travelers can go to find “the truth” about the places they’re visiting? Caveat emptor!

Trip Advisor and Viator aren’t the only ones taking advantage of tourists. Many other tour operators offering Eiffel Tower tickets sell them for well over the official price, usually by selling a guided tour or by having a “host” accompany you, because (according to one ticket seller): “Finding the right entrance at the Eiffel can be tricky, especially with the crowds. Hosted entry ensures a smooth and stress-free visit, letting you focus on the experience rather than the logistics.” Nice fear-mongering. If you want to pay €78/per person instead of €36/per person to have someone hold your hand, it’s your money. But don’t forget: millions of tourists from around the world have figured out how to find their way up the Eiffel Tower without any additional assistance. 😉

3. Go at Night

If you don’t want to commit to purchasing an advance ticket (or didn’t plan ahead, oops!) you can also avoid the long lines by going as late as possible in the evening. I know what you’re thinking: “Let’s get there early, before it opens.” Guess what? Everyone else is thinking that, too! Plus, if you get there an hour before opening time, you are GUARANTEED to wait an hour, even if you’re first. Bad move. Groups of travelers, families with grumpy kids, and anyone who is usually too pooped after sight-seeing all day and drinking French wine at dinner will usually collapse well before the Eiffel Tower closes, meaning the lines are much shorter. There are also a certain number of summit tickets via stairs plus elevator that are ONLY sold directly at the ticket window, so that last-minute travelers have a chance a getting in.

Eiffel Tower Opening Hours

It’s always a good idea to double-check opening hours on the official website. From mid-June through the end of September the Eiffel Tower is usually open until midnight (meaning you can enter until midnight; it actually closes at 12:45am, or 11pm for the summit elevator); the rest of the year it closes at 11:45pm (last entrance to the summit 10:30pm, last entrance to the 2nd level 11pm, and last entrance via the stairs at 10:45pm). But these can change because of “special closures” or other events, so always check the times before heading over. I’ve had clients show up at 10:30pm in high season and only wait 15 minutes for the elevator to the summit. The moral to the story? Sleep in, stay up late, enjoy Paris by Night! 😉 

Do You Really Need a Guide?

As someone who was a professional guide for over a dozen years, I’d say “no”. If there’s one place that is obvious enough that you don’t need a guide, the Eiffel Tower is it. You can read up on everything they’ll tell you (for example, while waiting for the elevator) on the free Eiffel Tower app (there’s also free WiFi at the Eiffel Tower). A guide will just mean you have to nod politely and listen to generic anecdotes while what you really want to be doing is taking photos. And I’ve never met a guide who likes taking people to the Eiffel Tower, so keep that in mind. Save your money for the Champagne!